Betrayal: The Story of Aldrich Ames, an American Spy
Nov 2014 · Random House
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About this ebook
The remarkable story of the last American spy of the Cold War: Aldrich “Rick” Ames, the most destructive traitor in the history of the Central Intelligence Agency
Tim Weiner, David Johnston, and Neil A. Lewis, reporters for The New York Times, tell how the barons of the CIA could not believe that its headquarters harbored a traitor. For years, the Agency was baffled by a wily Russian spymaster who played a high-stakes chess game against the Americans, deceiving the CIA into thinking that there were other moles—or no moles at all.
It took nearly eight years for the CIA to share the full facts of the scenario with the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Once they knew those facts, the men and women of the FBI tracked Aldrich Ames day and night for nine months before they arrested him. They tell their story here in astonishing detail for the first time.
The interviews are entirely on-the-record. There are no pseudonyms, anonymous quotes, or invented scenes. The men betrayed by Ames were real people, and the stories of their lives are the true history of the espionage game in the waning years of the Cold War.
Tim Weiner, David Johnston, and Neil A. Lewis, reporters for The New York Times, tell how the barons of the CIA could not believe that its headquarters harbored a traitor. For years, the Agency was baffled by a wily Russian spymaster who played a high-stakes chess game against the Americans, deceiving the CIA into thinking that there were other moles—or no moles at all.
It took nearly eight years for the CIA to share the full facts of the scenario with the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Once they knew those facts, the men and women of the FBI tracked Aldrich Ames day and night for nine months before they arrested him. They tell their story here in astonishing detail for the first time.
The interviews are entirely on-the-record. There are no pseudonyms, anonymous quotes, or invented scenes. The men betrayed by Ames were real people, and the stories of their lives are the true history of the espionage game in the waning years of the Cold War.
Ratings and reviews
4.7
7 reviews
Peter Moore
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September 15, 2023
Excellent retelling of the Ames story, engaging and well crafted. Only shortcoming from my perspective is that the flaws of both Ames and the CIA are underscored a bit too heavily; detracts from the realism when everything is almost a caricature.
deborah elliott
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May 3, 2022
Excellent book! I have read 3 books on Aldrich Ames. This book is the best one. I never knew that the KGB enacted programs which protected Ames from suspicion after Russia quickly eliminated their people who were spying for the United States. Weiner's book is the only one which explains this. This book contains valuable information that is not found in other books. It is well worth reading!
About the author
Tim Weiner has won the Pulitzer Prize for his reporting and writing on secret intelligence and national security. As a correspondent forThe New York Times, he covered the Central Intelligence Agency in Washington and terrorism in Afghanistan, Pakistan, the Sudan, and other nations. His Legacy of Ashes: The History of the CIA won the National Book Award and was acclaimed as one of the year’s best books by The New York Times, The Economist, The Washington Post, Time, and many other publications. The Wall Street Journal called Betrayal “the best book ever written on a case of espionage.”
David Johnston covers the Justice Department and Federal law enforcement agencies for The New York Times. Since coming to the Times in 1987, he has had several reporting and editing assignments, including coverage of criminal trials arising from the Iran-contra affair. Before coming to the Times, Mr. Johnston covered national politics for the San Francisco Examiner. Born in Boston, he grew up in Florida and New York and attended Purdue University in Indiana.
Neil A. Lewis began working for The New York Times in 1986, covering the State Department, the Justice Department, and the public school system in New York City. He has worked in Washington, Johannesburg, and London as a correspondent for Reuters. A native of New York City and a graduate of its public schools, he holds degrees from Union College and the Yale Law School, where he was a Ford Foundation Fellow.
David Johnston covers the Justice Department and Federal law enforcement agencies for The New York Times. Since coming to the Times in 1987, he has had several reporting and editing assignments, including coverage of criminal trials arising from the Iran-contra affair. Before coming to the Times, Mr. Johnston covered national politics for the San Francisco Examiner. Born in Boston, he grew up in Florida and New York and attended Purdue University in Indiana.
Neil A. Lewis began working for The New York Times in 1986, covering the State Department, the Justice Department, and the public school system in New York City. He has worked in Washington, Johannesburg, and London as a correspondent for Reuters. A native of New York City and a graduate of its public schools, he holds degrees from Union College and the Yale Law School, where he was a Ford Foundation Fellow.
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